Calling All (Current and Wannabe) Women Scientists: You are the Key to Innovation

On my drive home the other night, I heard a story on APM’s Marketplace Freakonomics Radio about the dearth of patents received by women (only 7.5% of all patents filed). The shortage of patents was connected to the age-old (and sometimes controversial) gender gap in the science and engineering fields. Stephen Dubner (Freakonomics co-author) went on to suggest that if more women entered these fields, there would be a “dramatic effect on the economy…[that] might lift the GDP per capita by as much as 2.7%”!

One inspiring example is Dr. Jill Shore Auburn. Dr. Auburn was the director of SARE for 10 years and is now the Acting Director of the USDA Office of the Chief Scientist where she encourages the advancement of sustainable agricultural systems throughout all of USDA’s science programs.

In SARE 20/20: Celebrating Our First 20 Years, Envisioning the Next, Dr. Auburn introduces the report by saying, “SARE must become an even stronger force for change…[with] more groundbreaking research that deepens our understanding and practice of sustainability in its many dimensions: social, economic and environmental…Most importantly, it means investing in a new generation of committed and creative leaders who can forge new paths to get us where we need to go.” What’s most exciting to me is seeing this new generation of women scientists cropping up in Northeast SARE’s newest grant program – the Graduate Student Grants.

UVM graduate student, Bridgett Jamison, talks about the use of forage radishes as a pasture improvement tool, the topic of her NE-SARE grant.

The deadline to apply for the 2013 Graduate Student Grants is coming up on May 25, 2012. For more information, visit the Northeast SARE website at: nesare.org. With women leading the way, I believe our future of sustainable agriculture innovation is bright!

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